PETER MCDONOUGH Cont ’ d
When a major drought in 2002 threatened the industry , McDonough united the VSGA , MAPGA , GCSA and Club Managers Association and worked out a solution to the problem .
“ The solution was a concession to allow watering sparingly at night , to keep the grass alive , thus averting disaster ,” Norman said . “ That effort led to economic impact studies , BMP ’ s ( Best Management Practices ), nutrient management planning and hiring of a lobbyist . He was not simply a superintendent leader , he was a golf leader .”
McDonough arrived in Virginia in June 1991 for the Arnold Palmer Golf Course Design Company ’ s redesign of the Keswick golf course .
Larry Mraz , a Vietnam veteran and POW , was McDonough ’ s assistant at Keswick for 34 years .
“ I wouldn ’ t have been able to leave the home base if I didn ’ t have such a great person as Larry tending the store ,” McDonough said .
Mraz also is retired and lives about an hour north of McDonough in Florida . They get together for lunch once a month .
McDonough had another assistant at his side for 14 years starting in 2001 . Her name was Wendy , and McDonough referred to her as “ a once in a lifetime dog .” They roamed the golf course together in a cart . Golfers would shout or say hello , usually first to Wendy . “ Everybody loved my dog ,” McDonough said . When health issues led to Wendy ’ s death , her buddy promised
“ there would never be another Wendy .”
Tom Barry
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS ( Barry )
• Inducted into MAPGA Hall of Fame in 2014 .
• MAPGA Horton Smith Award for excellence in PGA member education in 1989 , 2000 and 2008 .
• MAPGA President ’ s Award ( 1990 ); Bill Strausbaugh Award for service to fellow members in employment and club relations ( 1992 ) and Professional of the Year Award ( 1994 ).
• VSGA Service to Golf Award in 2012 .
• Teacher of the MAPGA / VSGA Rules of Golf program in Virginia .
“ CONSUMMATE PGA PROFESSIONAL ”
“ I have never heard anyone say anything negative about Tom Barry … He is respected not only for his tenure and knowledge of his profession , but for the way that he treats every single person with kindness and respect ”
– Matt Smiley , VSGA executive director .
“ He was one of the best Rules officials in the entire region . Whenever there was a question about something , you could call Tom or Clyde Luther ( inaugural Class of 2016 ) or Dr . Lew Blakey . If anybody knew anything about rules or integrity it was Tom Barry .”
– Dick Johns , retired MAPGA executive director
“ He is a walking lesson in how to treat others with dignity and class , and a reminder of the old-school mentality of showing up to work every day with a servant mentality to help others ,” current MAPGA executive director Jon Guhl said .
Barry is known for his welcoming handshake to everyone entering or leaving the pro shop . He wears a sports jacket all the time no matter the temperature or the chore , including washing carts . His boss at a club in Chicago made his assistants wear one .
“ He said it makes you pretty distinctive if you have a coat on . If you want to keep a wallet in there or nowadays a phone or whatever , you ’ ve got somewhere to put it ,” Barry said .
What he is famous for are the handwritten notes he has passed on to more people than you can count . He is all about the other person . The notes are his way of serving . They thank . They congratulate . They encourage . They console or commiserate .
Barry knows many of the previous inductees . Barry attended the Hall of Fame ceremony when his friend and fellow Rules of Golf expert Dr . Lew Blakey was inducted in 2018 .
“ A pretty impressive group . The people in those halls of fame are really significant ,” Barry said . “ It is hard to put into words . It ’ s pretty special to be included . It ’ s not like I won the Masters , but to me it is .”
TOM BARRY
The headline for a 2019 Virginia Golfer article about PGA professional Tom Barry ’ s retirement from his head pro job at Jefferson-Lakeside Country Club ( now Lakeside Park Club ) proclaimed : “ A Prince of a Human Being .” How true .
The headline came from a quote by retired MAPGA Executive Director Dick Johns who went on to say : “ He looked out for his members 100 percent of the time . And he looked out for his fellow PGA professionals .”
Lakeside ’ s gentleman pro retired for health reasons at the age of 66 after spending 36 years at the club . Barry will celebrate his 71st birthday on Hall of Fame induction day .
JIM KITE
The history of Kite ’ s Hams , located in the Madison County community of Wolftown , started with a heckler at a professional baseball game in New Orleans in the mid-1960s .
According to the Kite ’ s Hams website , young Jim Kite was struggling on the pitcher ’ s mound in a game in which his team trailed .
A man in the stands stood and suggested Kite “ give us a break . Go out and earn an honest living .”
Kite decided to start a ham-curing business using his father ’ s secret recipe . In the 65 or so years Kite ’ s Hams has been in
SCOTT BROWN PHOTOGRAPHY
30 V IRGINIA G OLFER | S EPTEMBER / O CTOBER 2023 vsga . org